BuzzFeed is throwing an inclusive, queer prom on May 13, 2017, and you're invited!

If you're a current high school senior in the United States, identify as LGBT+, and need a safe space for prom, apply online here for the chance to be flown out to Los Angeles to attend our celebration and star in a very special BuzzFeed Video series.

You might ask: why is this important? Think, for a second, about the glorified, customary cotillion known as senior prom.

But for most, prom is a fun, highly anticipated night where you can present yourself and your date in life's first press junket.

However, for queer-identifying high school seniors, the risks can be far less comical and prom can present an incredibly repressive hurdle in someone’s coming out journey. We're expected to formally present ourselves for the first time, not only in dress, but in romantic preference.

Advertisement

And although we're slowly witnessing progress, visibility for queer students remains underrepresented in our schools and across media, and tangible examples of how a free expression of love and identity remain few and far between.

That's why BuzzFeed's Queer Prom aims to provide a safe space for people of all gender identities and sexual orientations to come together for the party they always dreamed of.

BuzzFeed

And if you're interested in attending on May 13, 2017, 4-5 select individuals from across the nation will be flown out for the event to star as our Prom Court in a BuzzFeed Video series. The rest of the high school seniors in attendance will be pooled from local Los Angeles schools.

So cheers to all of the inclusive proms happening now and to the queer students and allies who support them! May the example we set today become the new traditions of tomorrow.